Director Denis Villeneuve stunned fans with the release of the sci-fi epic Dune in 2021. Adapted from the revered novels of the same name by Frank Herbert, Dune introduced us to Timothée Chalamet's Paul Atreides who travels to the harsh desert planet of Arrakis after his father, Duke Leto Atreides (Oscar Isaac) is assigned to replace Baron Vladimir Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgård) as its fiefholder. His life is soon thrown into chaos when the Harkonnens and Sardaukar stage a coup, leading Paul and his mother Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson) to be dumped in the harsh deserts to die. However, they are discovered by a Fremen tribe led by Stilgar (Javier Bardem), an indigenous people of Arrakis who use the unforgiving conditions and giant sandworms of the desert to their advantage.
Despite its delay in release due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Dune was a box office smash hit grossing $402 million on a $165 million budget and scooping six Academy Awards. Anticipation for its second instalment has been high, with a star-studded cast featuring newcomers Florence Pugh, Léa Seydoux, and Austin Butler. And Villeneuve has delivered a sequel firing on all cylinders that could well be the best film of the year.
The director has taken the core material from the novels and made the world of Dune his own, weaving astute political commentary and the struggles of indigenous people into a vast, spellbinding landscape that's both too beautiful to turn away from, yet filled with such hardships and horrors it's hard not to hide behind your hands. Working seamlessly alongside stunning set pieces and Greig Fraser's phenomenal cinematography, the sound design creates an imposing, throbbing heart as the film's core – transporting audiences directly into the action. The menacing BDSM-meets-intergalactic traveller costumes are the sumptuous bow on top of a feast for the senses with each stylish scene not out of place in a top runway show.
The barbarous conditions of Arrakis are matched only by those who inhabit it. Chalamet is captivating as the charismatic yet tortured Paul battling with his desire to bring peace to the Fremen and accepting his destiny. He and Zendaya — as Fremen warrior Chani — make for a bewitching duo as their romance blossoms and then tragically falls apart with Paul's rise to power. Rebecca Ferguson perfectly embodies Jessica, whose eerie, ethereal aura commands the attention of the Fremen — and the audience — from the moment she graces each scene. But it's newcomer Austin Butler who steals the show as the savage Feyd-Rautha who, with each intimidating smile, softly-spoken threat or sudden act of extreme violence, emanates a terrifying onscreen presence.
Part Two is noticeably darker, dialling up the political unrest and doom-filled prophecies Paul experiences. Religious fanaticism is juxtaposed with the hope stemming from faith, as the scheming and plotting of the Harkonnens fuels the film's march towards its inevitable, blood-filled conclusion.
Simply unlike any other blockbuster in existence, Villeneuve has created a spectacle that explodes onto the screen and never lets up, delivering both thematically and visually. With rich, complex character growth and darker themes, Dune: Part Two does the seemingly impossible – surpassing Part One thanks to its grand ambition. Herbert's magnum opus has long since been considered unadaptable after the ill-fated attempt of David Lynch in 1984, but this 21st-century adaptation proves otherwise and marks a bold new era of sci-fi cinema. Long live the fighters, and long live Villeneuve's glorious reign atop the Dune franchise.
Dune: Part Two is released in cinemas on March 1.
